Introduction to Psychology - PSYC 201 - PDF

Introduction to Psychology – PSYC 201 – 3 Cr. (Prerequisite: ENGL 201) UNIT 1: Introducing Psychology & Research Methods Introduction: In this unit, we are going to be introduced to the field of psychology and to the different perspectives in contemporary psycholog...

Introduction to Psychology – PSYC 201 – 3 Cr. (Prerequisite: ENGL 201) UNIT 1: Introducing Psychology & Research Methods Introduction: In this unit, we are going to be introduced to the field of psychology and to the different perspectives in contemporary psychology. In addition to the research methods used by psychologists. At the end of this unit, students will be able to: Describe the origins of psychology List the different perspectives in contemporary psychology Distinguish between the different key issues and controversies Understand the different research methods used by psychologists Historical overview Almost 7,000 years ago, people thought that psychological problems were caused by evil spirits. So ancient healers chipped a hole in a patient’s skull with crude instruments – a procedure called trephining. In 18th Century, Franz Josef Gall (a physician) argued that you can detect whether one was intelligent, had moral character, and other basic personality characteristics from the shape and number of bumps on a person’s skull. These might sound far-fetched but in their own times, they were the most advanced thinking of what was psychology at the time. Of course our understanding of behaviour has progressed so much since the 18th century. But they have all been discovered recently – where Psychology is one of the new kids on the block in relation to sciences. To understand psychology, we must first try to identify what it means. The origins of Psychology Let us first define the term psychology: the science of the mind and behaviour (APA, 2023). Historically, psychology was an area within philosophy and emerged from it. Now, 1 it is a diverse scientific discipline comprising of major branches of research (e.g. biological, developmental, personality, social, etc. We can trace back the origins of psychology to the Ancient Greeks who considered the mind to be a topic of intellectual observation. In 17th Century, British philosopher John Locke believed that we are born into the world with minds like “blank slates” (tabula rasa in latin) and that our experiences determined what kind of adults we would become. His views contrasted with those of Plato and 17th Century philosopher Rene Descartes, who argued that some knowledge was inborn in humans. However, the formal beginning of psychology as a scientific discipline was considered to be in the late 19th Century, when Wilhelm Wundt (considered as the father of psychology) established the first experimental laboratory devoted to psychological phenomena in Leipzig, Germany. At about the same time, William James set up his lab in Cambridge, MA (USA). Wundt set up his lab to study the building blocks of the mind. He considered psychology to be the study of conscious experience. His perspective, known as structuralism, focused on revealing the fundamental mental components of Perception, Consciousness, Thinking, Emotions, and other kinds of mental states and activities. Wundt and other structuralists used a procedure called introspection where they presented people with a stimulus – such as bright green object or a sentence printed on a card – and asked them to describe in their own words and in as much detail as they could, what they were experiencing. Wundt argued that by analysing people’s reports of this experiment, psychologists could come to a better understanding of the structure of the mind. Over time, psychologists challenged his approach and did not believe that introspection could reveal the structure of the mind and that it was not a truly scientific technique. Also many people had problems describing their inner experiences such as their emotional responses. So new approaches were developed to replace structuralism. Functionalism replaced it which concentrated on what the mind does and how behaviour functions. Functionalists asked what role behaviour plays in allowing people to adapt to their environments. For example, examining the function of the emotion of fear in preparing us to deal with emergency situations. 2 William James (American psychologist) led the functionalist movement – functionalists examined how people satisfy their needs through their behaviour. Structuralism was also replaced by Gestalt Psychology which emphasized that our perception, or understanding, of objects is greater and more meaningful than the individual elements that make up our perceptions – An approach to psychology that focuses on the organization of perception and thinking in a “whole” sense rather than on the individual elements of perception, see the bigger picture of things. Today’s Perspectives The founding psychologists shared a common goal: to explain and understand behavior using scientific methods. Perspectives give different outlooks and emphasize different factors. Just like a map to find our way around a particular area – where the map shows different roads and highways and another map that shows major landmarks – psychologists developed a variety of approaches to understand behaviour. Today, the field of psychology includes five major perspectives. These broad perspectives emphasize different aspects of behavior and mental processes, and each takes our understanding of behavior in a somewhat different direction. 1. The Neuroscience perspective: The neuroscience perspective considers how people and nonhumans function biologically: how individual nerve cells are joined together, how the inheritance of certain characteristics from parents and other ancestors influences behavior, how the functioning of the body affects hopes and fears, which behaviors are instinctual, and so forth. This perspective includes the study of heredity and evolution, which considers how heredity may influence behavior; and behavioral neuroscience, which examines how the brain and the nervous system affect behavior. 2. The Psychodynamic perspective: (understanding the inner person) Advocates of the Psychodynamic perspective argue that behavior is driven by inner forces and conflicts which we have little awareness of and no control over. 3 Where dreams and slips of the tongue (Freudian Slip) as signs of what a person is really feeling unconsciously. The origins of the psychodynamic view are linked to one person: Sigmund Freud. He was an Austrian doctor in the early 1900s whose ideas about unconscious factors of behaviour had a ground-breaking effect on 20th century thinking. Even though there are some criticisms of the Freudian principles, this perspective has helped in understanding and treating some of types of psychological disorders as well as understand everyday phenomena such as prejudice and aggression. 3. The Behavioural Perspective: (Observing the outer person) While the neuroscience and psychodynamic approaches look inside our mind to establish the foundations of its behaviour, the Behavioural Perspective takes a different approach. Advocates of this perspective rejected psychology’s early emphasis on the inner workings of the mind and instead suggests that the focus should be on observable behaviour that can be evaluated objectively. John B. Watson was the first major American psychologist to support a behavioural approach. He argued that one could completely understand behaviour by studying and modifying the environment in which people lived. This philosophy is clear in his own words: “Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I’ll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select—doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief, and yes, even beggar-man and thief, regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations and race of his ancestors” (Watson, 1924). The behavioural perspective was supported by B. F. Skinner, a pioneer in this field. Most of our understanding of how we learn new behaviours is based on the behavioural perspective. It turns up in every lane in psychology. It has also contributed in the treatment of mental disorders, restraining aggression, and ending drug addiction among others (Silverman, Roll & Higgins, 2008; Schlinger, 2011) 4. The Cognitive Perspective: (Identifying the roots of understanding) Attempts to better understand behaviour, some psychologists were lead straight back to the mind. 4  The Cognitive Perspective focused on how people think, understand and know about the world. The importance was on learning how people understand and characterize the outside world within themselves and how the way we think about the world impact our behaviour. Many cognitive psychologists compare human thinking to the workings of a computer, taking in information, and converting it, storing it and retrieving it. Basically, they view thinking as information processing. Psychologists who depend on this perspective examine subjects ranging from how people make decisions to whether a person can watch television and study at the time. 5. The Humanistic Perspective: (unique qualities of the human species) Rejecting the view that behaviour is controlled by biological forces, unconscious processes or the environment, the Humanistic Perspective suggests that we all naturally endeavour to grow, develop and be in control of our lives and behaviour. Humanistic psychologists sustain that we all have the capacity to pursue and achieve fulfilment. Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow, who were principal figures in the development of the humanistic approach, indicated that people strive to reach their full potential if they are given the chance. The emphasis of this perspective is on free will, feeling free to make decisions about our behaviour and life. This is in contrast to determinism where they see behaviour as caused by things beyond a person’s control. Humanistic perspective emphasises the position of psychology in improving people’s lives and helping them achieve self-fulfilment. Controversies Nature vs Nurture: This is one of the major issues that psychologists focus on. How much of people’s behaviour depends on their genetically determined nature (heredity) and how much is due to nurture (influences of physical/social environments). And what is the relationship between nature and nurture? This depends on which perspective that is being relied on. For example, developmental psychologists who focus on how people grow and change in their lives would be most interested in learning more about hereditary influences if they follow a neuroscience perspective. In contract, developmental psychologists who are advocates of the behavioural perspective are likely to focus on environment (Rutter, 2002; Barrett, 2011) 5 Yet, psychologists would agree that neither nature nor nurture alone determines behaviour, but rather it is a combination of both. But the real debate is how much of our behaviour is caused by heredity and how much by environmental influences. Conscious vs unconscious: A second question that has brought great debate and controversy in the field of psychology is how much of our behaviour is created by forces that we are fully aware of and how much is due to unconscious action. For example, a Clinical psychologist who adopts a psychodynamic perspective will argue that psychological disorders are generated by unconscious factors whereas those employing the cognitive perspective indicate that psychological disorders are the result of faulty thinking processes. Observable behaviour vs. internal mental processes Some psychologists who depend on the behavioural perspective, argue that the only acceptable source of information for psychologists is behaviour that can be observed directly. Others who follow the cognitive perspective, argue that what goes inside a person’s mind is vital to understanding behaviour, and must be concerned with mental processes. Free will vs. determinism How much of our behaviour is a matter of free will (choices made freely) and how much is dependent on determinism (behaviour produced by factors beyond willful control)? Individual differences vs. universal principles How much of our behaviour is a result of our unique qualities that differentiates us from others? Equally, how much of our behaviour is reflected by to the culture and the society we live in, arising from universal principles? Psychologists who depend on the neuroscience perspective look for universal principles of behaviour such as how the nervous system functions. In contrast, psychologist who use humanistic perspective focus more on the uniqueness of every individual. RESEARCH in Psychology 6 The scientific method is the approach used by psychologists to systematically obtain knowledge and understanding about behavior and other phenomena of interest. It consists of four main steps: 1. identifying questions of interest, (Theories) 2. formulating an explanation, (hypothesis) 3. carrying out research designed to support or refute the explanation, and 4. communicating the findings Theories (Identifying questions of interest): psychologists identify questions of interest that they need an answer to about the nature and causes of behaviour. For example, why one friend is always on time and another one is always late? What makes me choose this colour and not another? Or how does my cat understand when I tell her it is time for lunch? Hypothesis: testable predictions It is a prediction stated in a way that allows it to be tested. They originate from theories (questions asked) – they help test whether the theories suggested are sound. For example, how meditation can lower the level of stress. Or how critical thinking can help students do better in maths. Hypothesis1: Mediation will lower stress level in younger adults Hypothesis2: Meditation will not increase stress level in younger adults Hypothesis0: Meditation will cause no effect in stress level in younger adults Research methods: A number of methods are available to conduct research. There are psychological research which include archival research (existing data examined), naturalistic observation (observe only), survey research (questionnaires), case study (in-depth investigation of one person or group), and correlational research (relationship between two sets of variables examined). There are also experimental research where an experiment investigates the relationship between two or more variables by deliberately producing a change in one variable in a situation and observing the effects of that change on other aspects of the situation. Which research method to choose? 7 It depends what is the type of study you are embarking on. Let's say you are interested in studying what makes people happy. To answer these questions, you need to decide how to collect your data. Most frequently used methods include: 1. Observation / Participant Observation 2. Surveys (Quantitative) 3. Interviews (qualitative) 4. Focus Groups 5. Experiments 6. Secondary Data Analysis / Archival Study 7. Mixed Methods (combination of some of the above) For instance, surveys are usually designed to produce relatively short answers, rather than the extensive responses expected in qualitative interviews. What other factors should I consider when choosing one method over another? Time for data collection and analysis is something you want to consider. An observation or interview method, qualitative approach, helps you collect richer information, but it takes time. Using a survey (quantitative) helps you collect more data quickly, yet it may lack details. So, you will need to consider the time you have for research and the balance between strengths and weaknesses associated with each method (e.g., qualitative vs. quantitative). Ethics in research Because research has the potential to violate the rights of participants, psychologists are expected to adhere to a strict set of ethical guidelines aimed at protecting participants (American Psychological Association, 2002). Those guidelines involve the following safeguards: Protection of participants from physical and mental harm. The right of participants to privacy regarding their behavior. The assurance that participation in research is completely voluntary. The necessity of informing participants about the nature of procedures before their participation in the experiment. All experiments must be reviewed by an independent panel before being con- ducted (Fisher et al., 2002; Fisher, 2003; Smith, 2003). A key ethical principle in psychological research is the principle of informed consent. Before participating in any type of experiment, participants must sign a document confirming that they have been informed about the study and are aware of what their 8 participation will entail, what are the risks and that their participation is voluntary and may withdraw at any time. Furthermore, after participation in a study, they must be given a debriefing in which they receive an explanation of the study and the procedures that were involved. The only time informed consent and a debriefing can be eliminated is in experiments in which the risks are minimal, as in a purely observational study in a public place (Koocher, Nor- cross, & Hill, 2005; Fallon, 2006; Barnett, Wise, & Johnson-Greene, 2007; Nagy, 2011). In summary In this unit, we looked at the evolution of psychology (from structuralism, to functionalism to Gestalt Psychology) and how it became a scientific discipline when the founding father of Psychology, Wilhelm Wundt, established the first experimental laboratory. More contemporary perspectives were evolved and included five major ones that emphasized different aspects of behavior and mental processes: the neuroscience, the psychodynamic, the behavioural, the cognitive and the humanistic perspectives. Controversies on different approaches were discussed such as the nature vs. nature debate and the conscious and unconscious. Methods of research were covered and given a bird’s eye view of the different research methods and the ethics of research in psychology. End of Unit 1 activity Classwork: Think of a question related to any of the perspectives discussed in this unit that you would like answered and write your own hypothesis (e.g. Does thinking negatively make me behave negatively?) Read Chapters 2 & 3 Lecturer/Instructor: Sonya J. Sabbah (M.Sc., L.L.B) Date: 1st July, 2024 *** 9